Production, Identification and Characterization of Erianthus rockii × Narenga porphyrocoma Intergeneric Hybrids as a New Germplasm for Sugarcane Breeding and Genetic Research

As the wild relative genera of sugarcane, Narenga porphyrocoma and Erianthus rockii are becoming more potential germplasm sources due to valuable traits in sugarcane breeding. Many previous studies were performed to integrate the desirable characters from wild species into modern sugarcane cultivars. Until now, the lack of fertility in hybrids is still a thorny problem in most cases. In our present study, a rare hybrid between E. rockii (2n = 30) and N. porphyrocoma (2n = 30) had been developed for the first time. The molecular primers MSSCIR66, SMC720BS and SMC597CS were successfully applied to identify the putative F1 hybrids. Besides, the chromosome composition and transmission have also been reported to screen the true F1 hybrids via genomic in situ hybridization. From the breeding point of view, the implications of gene introgression from N. porphyrocoma and E. rockii are discussed.